IHE model that we apply to our solutions has the origin of “Integrating The Health Care Enterprise” association, which is established by radiology and information technology specialists in 1998.

We have to specify how we adapt standards we accepted, for our information system applications, which serve to hospitals and facilities. IHE is a model that states how standards like HL7 and DICOM should be applied. It does not identify a new standard, it only helps to adapt existing standards for meeting the medical needs of healthcare sector.

IHE Technical Framework is a technical document to provide a common platform for DICOM and HL7 usage. This document, helps systems developed for healthcare work together for sharing patient information and specifies related systems, integration profiles and operations. Integration profiles specify the way standards will be applied to meet healthcare needs. Today, through these profiles it becomes possible for us to work with other companies using radiology, cardiology, laboratory and information system infrastructures.

Solutions we developed to meet the needs of health information systems like HIS, RIS and PACS provide data communication using the standard called “Health Level 7”. It consists of 7 layers as OSI model. Through this standard, accepted in March 1987, data can be transmitted between environments of healthcare. The aim of HL7 is to provide the communication between PACS computer applications. Platforms where systems like HIS, RIS and PACS run on use TCP/IP network communication protocol. To explain the role of HL7 in data transmission between information systems by an example:

To provide communication between Hospital Information System and Radiology Information System, firstly, an event like patient admission, transfer or discharge should happen. The main computer, which Hospital Information System is in, is responsible for tracking these events. This computer, Radiology Information System is also connected, sends a message to remote server. Since Radiology Information System is processing the next operation at that time, it does not expect this message. The format of this message is important; if it is in HL7 format, message is parsed, database is updated and acknowledgement is sent to confirm that the message is sent. If message is in different format, message rejection information has to be sent.

Today’s version of HL7, known as Version 2.x, has applied successfully in healthcare and developed day by day. HL7’s latest version, Version 3, has an object-oriented approach and its’ primary goal is to present an accurate and testable standard.

It is a standard that provides medical data transmission between two computers. As well as data transmission, storage and data sent out to printer, DICOM also specifies an internationally accepted network protocol or file format in medical imaging. This network protocol uses another protocol called TCP/IP to provide the communication between DICOM-compatible computer applications. DICOM-compatibility of two applications mean that they are developed to be capable of sending and receiving DICOM-formatted images and patient information between two computers.

DICOM file format, enables to keep the quality level of images presented, which are gathered from imaging devices we frequently see in hospitals and facilities. DICOM file format, includes parameters like slice space, modality and protocol name.

DICOM standard is consisted of services like “Store” that enables images to be stored on server, “Query/Retrieve” that enables images to be queried on server by workstation and “Printing” that provides images to be sent to printer. Each service has a related task to carry out between computer applications.

When images in DICOM format are converted to frequently used “.jpeg” or “.bmp” picture formats, there is a probability of data loss. Therefore, there is a need for software, as our medical image processing product “Callisto”, that enables files having DICOM extension to be converted to various kinds of file formats, while enabling them to be viewed in their original formats as well. Image quality is important especially in medicine; a small detail that a doctor missed may lead to serious consequences for patient’s life. Thus, keeping the quality level of medical images has a major importance.

Through DICOM standard, imaging devices and workstations which are far from each other or produced by different vendors became capable of communicating quickly and easily as they are in the same location, reducing costs in healthcare sector. In addition, transmitting patient results to medical specialist earlier leads to earlier examination and quicker diagnose of patient results. Through DICOM file format, while keeping the quality level of images, correctness of diagnosis becomes ensured.

Image archiving and communication systems, which are used to transmit, store and distribute data are called PACS (“Picture Archiving and Communication System”). Developed in late 1980’s, this system serves independent subsystems which we call “module”. Thus, traditional film-oriented usage yield to data transmission at electronic platform.

As well as fast transmission of images to destination, PACS allows users to access to images from multiple-modalities easily. Since images are stored digitally on PACS system, the need for film usage has started to disappear as PACS provided a more affordable solution.

PACS systems, while being capable of being integrated to many hospital information systems, also has to have a structure that works with PACS infrastructure in a harmony. Providing the connection between these two layers is very important for our systems. PACS infrastructure is designed to be modular, extendible - as being able to gain new features - and affordable. Internationally accepted imaging and image storage format is called “DICOM” (“Digital Imaging and Communications In Medicine”).

PACS system consists of 4 components, the network that helps transmission of patient information, workstations where data is reviewed, modalities and archive (server) that is used to retrieve and store images. Since our solutions have to be compatible with various kinds of servers, workstations, devices and network, they are developed to meet miscellaneous kinds of needs and expectations.

Three basic kinds of PACS architecture are used as Independent Model, Client-server Model and Web-based Model: